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Claire Aird
Hackers steal millions in crypto from adspower browser users Paragon cuts off Italy's access to its spyware platform, France outsources EU border software to Russia and a UN and NATO hacker is detained in Spain. This is the risky bulletin prepared by Catalyn Kimparnu and read by me, Claire aird. Today is the 7th of February and this podcast episode is brought to you by Thinxt. The makers of the much loved Think a threat actor has compromised Crypto Wallet browser extensions for the adspower browser platform. The attacker added code that stole wallet recovery phrases and private keys from users of the niche browser. The breach took place in January and was detected after three days. ADSPower has removed the code and uninstalled the modified extensions from users browsers. Blockchain Security firm Slowmist estimates that hackers stole around $4.7 million in crypto assets. In other news, Israeli spyware company Paragon has allegedly cut off Italy's access to its platform in the wake of reports the government there had targeted journalists and activists for surveillance. Italian officials have denied the reports, which claim the government targeted vocal critics of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. The hacks were part of a larger attack that hit 13 other EU countries. According to Meta, seven of the alleged targets are from Italy. The Trump administration has extended its workforce buyout program to employees of cisa, the CIA and nsa. The buyout program allows government workers to retain their pay and benefits until the end of September if they resign this week. The White House has extended the buyout to over 2 million civilian federal workers. CISA employees were told last week they were exempt from the offer because their work is linked to national security. New US Attorney General Pam Bondi has disbanded a Justice Department task force that investigated foreign influence operations. The unit was set up in 2017 to counter foreign influence operations targeting US elections. The unit's work contributed to charges and sanctions against many Russian organisations involved in infOps and bot farms targeting elections in the US and around the world. Hackers have leaked documents from 21 Taliban ministries and government agencies. Over 50 gigabytes of data has been published to a website named Talib Leagues. The documents allegedly include the names of political prisoners and the details of government employees banned from leaving the country by the Taliban. The Taliban has confirmed the authenticity of the files. Deloitte has agreed to pay $5 million to the state of Rhode island to cover the cost of a recent ransomware attack. The incident took place in December and targeted State's health and social services portal, a system managed by Deloitte Rhode island says the Deloitte payment will be used to cover a call centre for people who've been impacted, credit monitoring and identity protection. EU investigators have launched an investigation into French IT firm ATOS for using staff based in Russia to build the EU's new electronic border system. According to the Financial Times. The new system will house the EU's biggest biometric and personal information database. The European Public Prosecutors Office is looking for possible FSB involvement in the work at Atoz's Russian office. Spain's national police have detained a suspect for allegedly hacking over 40 organisations. Authorities arrested the suspect last week in the city of Calpe on Spain's Mediterranean coast. Officials say the suspect breached multiple high level Spanish government agencies, NATO and U.S. army networks, many private companies and even several dark web forums. He's also the prime suspect behind the hack of the UN Civ aviation body earlier this year. The Chinese cyber contractor behind the widespread compromise of Sophos firewalls in 2020 is in financial trouble, according to an investigation by the blog nattothorts. Sichuan Silence filed for bankruptcy in December, two weeks after the US sanctioned the company and one of its employees. Chinese court documents have also revealed that the sanctioned employee filed a labour dispute against the company in July 2020. Siwa so I guess China is the one place where cybercrime actually doesn't pay Hackers are exploiting a zero day vulnerability in Trimble cityworks, a platform for managing physical infrastructure such as water and sewage systems. The zero day deserialization vulnerability can lead to remote code execution and allow hackers to take over the platform. Trimble says the vulnerability has been used to deploy cobalt Strike implants and custom rust malware on cityworks servers. Germany's cybersecurity agency BSI has discovered multiple vulnerabilities in the next cloud file sharing platform that can be used to bypass multi factor authentication. The BSI has recently conducted security audits of multiple open source projects such as keepass, Bitwarden and vaultwarden. Nextcloud has patched all the issues that were reported. And finally, game studio Bohemia Interactive says it's making progress in mitigating a wave of DDoS attacks that have targeted its games Armor Reforger and Dayz. A Russian hacking group named Star Squad Reborn has taken credit for the attacks in a series of online posts. The group claims it's launching the attacks after the gaming studio failed to invest in its servers for over a decade, leading to poor performance for gamers. And that is all for this podcast edition. A heads up the Risky Bulletin is taking a break next week and will return on the 17th of February. Today's show is brought to you by our sponsor, Thinxt, the makers of the much loved Thinxt Canary. Find them at Canary Tools. Thanks for your company.
Risky Bulletin: Browser Extension Supply Chain Attack Hits AdsPower
Hosted by risky.biz | Released on February 7, 2025
The latest episode of Risky Bulletin, hosted by Claire Aird and prepared by Catalyn Kimparnu, delves into a series of significant cybersecurity incidents that have emerged recently. This detailed summary encapsulates the key discussions, insights, and conclusions presented in the episode, providing a comprehensive overview for those who haven’t had the chance to listen.
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The episode opens with a concerning development in the cryptocurrency realm. A threat actor successfully compromised browser extensions associated with the AdsPower platform, a specialized browser used by crypto enthusiasts. The attacker injected malicious code designed to steal wallet recovery phrases and private keys from users.
Detection and Response: The breach occurred in January and was detected within three days. Upon discovery, ADSPower swiftly removed the compromised code and uninstalled the affected extensions from users' browsers.
Financial Impact: Blockchain security firm Slowmist estimates that approximately $4.7 million in crypto assets were illicitly siphoned.
Claire Aird Highlights: "A threat actor has compromised Crypto Wallet browser extensions for the AdsPower browser platform," ([00:04] Claire Aird).
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The Israeli spyware company, Paragon, has reportedly ceased Italy's access to its surveillance platform following allegations that the Italian government utilized the software to monitor journalists and activists targeting Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Italian Response: Italian authorities have refuted these claims, maintaining that reports of government surveillance are unfounded.
Broader Implications: This incident is part of a larger cyberattack affecting 13 other EU nations. Meta reports that seven of the targets are based in Italy.
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In a strategic move, the Trump administration has broadened its workforce buyout initiative to include employees from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and the National Security Agency (NSA).
Program Details: The buyout offers government workers the option to retain their current pay and benefits until the end of September if they resign within the week.
Scope of Offer: Initially excluding CISA employees due to their roles tied to national security, the program now extends to over 2 million civilian federal workers.
Quote from Claire Aird: "The White House has extended the buyout to over 2 million civilian federal workers," ([00:04] Claire Aird).
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New U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has dismantled a Justice Department task force established in 2017 to combat foreign influence operations targeting U.S. elections.
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A significant leak has emerged involving documents from 21 Taliban ministries and government agencies, totaling over 50 gigabytes of data. These files, hosted on a website named Talib Leagues, disclose the names of political prisoners and details about government employees prohibited from leaving Afghanistan.
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Deloitte has agreed to pay $5 million to the state of Rhode Island in response to a ransomware attack that targeted the state's health and social services portal in December.
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European Union investigators have initiated an inquiry into the French IT company ATOS for allegedly employing staff based in Russia to develop the EU's new electronic border system.
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Spain's national police have apprehended a suspect in the city of Calpe for allegedly hacking over 40 organizations, including high-level Spanish government agencies, NATO, the U.S. Army networks, various private companies, and several dark web forums.
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Sichuan Silence, the Chinese cyber contractor responsible for the widespread compromise of Sophos firewalls in 2020, has filed for bankruptcy as of December. This financial distress came shortly after the U.S. sanctioned the company and one of its employees.
Legal Proceedings: Chinese court documents reveal that the sanctioned employee initiated a labor dispute against Sichuan Silence in July 2020.
Claire Aird's Commentary: "China is the one place where cybercrime actually doesn't pay," ([00:04] Claire Aird).
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Hackers are exploiting a zero-day deserialization vulnerability in Trimble Cityworks, a platform utilized for managing critical physical infrastructure like water and sewage systems. This vulnerability permits remote code execution, enabling hackers to commandeer the platform.
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Germany's cybersecurity agency, BSI, has identified multiple vulnerabilities in Nextcloud's file-sharing platform that could allow attackers to bypass multi-factor authentication (MFA).
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Game studio Bohemia Interactive is actively mitigating a series of Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks targeting its titles, Armor Reforger and DayZ. The attacks have been traced back to a Russian hacking group known as Star Squad Reborn.
This episode of Risky Bulletin underscores the pervasive and evolving nature of cyber threats across various sectors and geopolitical landscapes. From financial theft in the crypto space to state-sponsored surveillance and infrastructure vulnerabilities, the discussions highlight the critical importance of robust cybersecurity measures and international cooperation in mitigating these risks.
Notable Quote Recap:
Stay Informed: For ongoing updates and in-depth analysis of cybersecurity news, tune into future episodes of Risky Bulletin.
This summary excludes advertisements, introductions, and outros to focus solely on the content-rich discussions presented in the episode.